JPMorgan Said to See Possible U.S. Accord on Madoff Scheme Role

JPMorgan Chase, under siege on multiple fronts by state and federal prosecutors investigating alleged wrongdoing at the largest U.S. bank, is in talks with federal prosecutors in New York to resolve allegations it helped facilitate Bernard Madoff’s crimes.

The probe by Manhattan U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara is tied to how the bank handled the funds of the convicted money manager and whether it turned a blind eye to his multibillion-dollar fraud, the biggest Ponzi scheme in U.S. history.

The case may end in a deferred prosecution agreement, a person familiar with the matter said. Under such an agreement, the government agrees not to pursue prosecution for a period of time and dismiss the charges if the entity or individual improves its programs or complies with the law. It is one of the options U.S. authorities have discussed with the bank, including resolving the matter with just a fine, said the person, who asked not to be identified because the talks are private.

JPMorgan is in the midst of negotiating the terms of a tentative $13 billion accord with the Justice Department to resolve state and federal civil investigations tied to residential mortgage backed securities and the collapse of the housing market that led to the 2008 financial crisis.

LEGAL ISSUES

The record mortgage settlement would help remove one of several legal issues facing the bank and its chief executive officer, Jamie Dimon, who has personally negotiated terms of the record deal with U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder, another person familiar with that agreement said.

JPMorgan, which has $23 billion in legal reserves, is trying to close as many investigations and outstanding lawsuits as it can before the end of the year, executives have said.

The New York Times reported earlier that a deferred prosecution deal in the Madoff probe was possible and said the discussions are preliminary. The government hasn’t decided what action to take against the bank, the person said.

“The firm is responding to various governmental investigations relating to Madoff, including by the Department of Justice and other regulators,” the bank said in a securities filing in August. JPMorgan was the primary banker for Madoff’s Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC, or BLMIS, for more than 20 years.

MANHATTAN PROSECUTOR

Brian Marchiony, a spokesman for the bank, declined to comment on the Madoff probe.

Jim Margolin, a spokesman for Bharara, declined to comment on JPMorgan’s talks with the Manhattan prosecutor regarding the Madoff fraud. Madoff, who pleaded guilty in 2009, is serving a 150-year prison term.

At least eight people, in addition to Madoff, have pleaded guilty to charges stemming from the case. Five former Madoff employees, who have pleaded not guilty, are currently on trial in federal court in New York, accused of conspiring for decades to hide Madoff’s fraud by creating millions of fake documents to trick customers and regulators.

In their criminal investigation, prosecutors have available to them documents and other evidence assembled by Irving Picard, the trustee in charge of liquidating Madoff’s accounts. He sued JPMorgan, seeking damages for its alleged role in helping the con man carry out his fraud scheme.

Amanda Remus, a spokeswoman for Picard, declined to comment on the federal probe.

Picard sued JPMorgan in December 2010, accusing the bank of aiding Madoff’s fraud. The lawsuit, eventually demanding $19 billion, the largest of Picard’s claims, was dismissed in November 2011. Picard has challenged the dismissal with the federal appeals court in Manhattan.

SUSPICIOUS EMPLOYEES

According to the trustee’s complaint, JPMorgan “had financial reports in its possession that clearly evidenced fraud,” David J. Sheehan, lead counsel for Picard and a partner at Baker & Hostetler LLP, said in a February 2011 statement.

JPMorgan benefited from Madoff accounts while it “helped perpetuate Madoff’s fraud by ignoring the red flags, and continuing to structure products and collect fees for their own enrichment,” according to the trustee’s lawsuit.

Picard cited both e-mails and oral communications to allege that JPM was careful not to invest in Madoff itself, and that several employees were suspicious of him. The trustee alleged that JPMorgan’s Private Bank “made a conscious and informed decision to avoid doing business with Madoff.”

“The Private Bank chose not to invest with any BLMIS feeder funds because it had never been able to reverse engineer how they made money,” an unidentified JPMorgan employee wrote in a message to customers after Madoff’s fraud case became public. That e-mail was included in an amended version of Picard’s complaint against JPMorgan.

EMPLOYEE E-MAIL

The trustee’s complaint also cited an e-mail by a bank employee to colleagues on June 15, 2007.

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